ISAT

This graph shows the percentage of students at this school that meet or exceed state standards on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT). The buttons above the graph allow you to select reading, mathematics, or composite (combined) scores. Multiple years of results are shown for the school, along with state wide averages for comparison.

Click on “View Details” to see additional years of ISAT performance data, district level, grade-level, subject-area results, and performance of student sub-groups.

This display allows you to take a closer look at ISAT performance for this school. District and state data is included for comparison.

Grade: The drop-down menu allows you to select a Summary (all grades at this school averaged together) or Each Grade at this school. Note that the ISAT is administered in grades 3-8. Click “Go” to see your selection.

Subject: The drop-down menu gives access to All Subjects or to one at a time. Click “Go” to see your selection.

Once you have made your selections, you can press the "Go!" button to display information. The "Excel" button downloads this information as an Excel file.

This advanced display illustrates year-by-year performance on the ISAT under a common set of cut scores, allowing for a more accurate year-by-year comparison and a view of the shift in results due to the change in cut scores.

In 2013, ISBE raised performance expectations on ISAT Reading and Mathematics. These higher expectations raised the “cut scores,” or the thresholds between different performance levels (such as “Below Standards” and “Meets Standards”) which resulted in a downward shift in the ranking of students in meeting or exceeding the new, more rigorous Reading and Math standards.

The Old and New Cut Score buttons illustrate the shift in this school. Use the Grade, Subject, and Student Group options across the top of the screen to customize your view. (Note that this display only shows Reading and Mathematics as the Science cut scores have not changed.)

This graph displays ISAT performance levels - Exceeds Standards, Meets Standards, Below Standards, Academic Warning - for students at this school over a multi-year period. To customize the data view, click the Select Options button. Use the drop down menus to choose the length of time and type of data you wish to view. Once the selections have been made, click the green Apply button. The View Details check box adds the data in chart format, for the default screen only. Mousing over any item in the color coded key beneath the graph, will change the display to only that single performance level.

When a subgroup has fewer than 10 students, the comparison data is not shown. This is done to protect student privacy.

This displays 2013-2014 data. PARCC assessment information for 2014-2015 will be posted as soon as it becomes available. To learn more about PARCC, visit parcconline.org.

A school demonstrating high state test results is likely to have multiple systems that support high levels of academic achievement. These may include a high level of teacher quality, advanced courses, and rigorous academic standards. Standardized tests results should be interpreted in the context of other measures of student achievement.

In January 2013, Illinois raised scores for passing the ISAT tests in both reading and math. This caused the percentage of students who scored as meeting or exceeding standards to decrease on the 2013 tests. The lower results starting in 2013 did not indicate a decrease in the quality of schools, teachers, or student work. Instead, the change reflects higher standards. To view long term data on state achievement tests, select Performance Levels from the left side menu.

Starting in 2014-2015, Illinois will replace the ISAT with a new test, called PARCC, that is fully aligned to the New Illinois Learning Standards. To learn more about new tests, select PARCC from the left side menu. Note that ISAT content has changed during the past two years. In 2013, 20% of ISAT test items were aligned to the new Illinois Learning Standards. In 2014, 100% of items were aligned to the new standards.

Illinois reports state test results according to four performance levels - Exceeds Standards (blue ), Meets Standards (green), Below Standards (yellow) and Academic Warning (red). The performance levels describe the progress students are making toward the Illinois Learning Standards. Exceeds Standards means that "student work demonstrates advanced knowledge and skills in the subject. Students creatively apply knowledge and skills to solve problems and evaluation results." Meets Standards means that "student work demonstrates proficient knowledge and skills in the subject. Students effectively apply knowledge and skills to solve problems." Below Standards means that "student work demonstrates basic knowledge and skills in the subject. However, because of gaps in learning, students apply knowledge and skills in limited ways." Academic Warning means that "student work demonstrates limited knowledge and skills in the subject. Because of major gaps in learning, students apply knowledge and skills ineffectively." Schools with larger percentages of students in the Meets Standards or Exceeds Standards categories are likely to have multiple systems that support higher levels of academic achievement. These may include a high level of teacher quality, advanced courses, and rigorous instruction. Standardized test results are only one indicator of student achievement and should be interpreted in the context of other measures.

The use of long term (or longitudinal data) to improve educational decision making is a national priority. This data allows educators and researchers to understand the link between various educational strategies and student performance. Longitudinal data is generally used as part of school improvement planning. The most common strategies for using data are professional development activities, providing support positions for system implementation, and the development of tools for generating data and tools for acting on the data collected."